


Fallen Stars

by SifaShep



Series: Narcissa Zagal: Citadel Conspiracy? [1]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Alchera, Gen, Mass Effect 2, SSV Normandy, commander narcissa zagal, commander remy shepard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-25
Updated: 2015-10-25
Packaged: 2018-04-28 03:47:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5076610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SifaShep/pseuds/SifaShep
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fallen Stars (Mass Effect, OC Captain Narcissa Zagal, Commander Remy Shepard (mentioned)</p>
<p>The SSV Forrestal responds to Joker’s distress call when the Normandy is attacked at the beginning of ME2. Captain Narcissa Zagal soon realizes there’s more than Citadel politics at play here.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fallen Stars

**Author's Note:**

> There was a discussion on Tumblr on whether or not Shepard was 'set up' to be assassinated at the beginning of ME2 or if the Normandy attack was a lucky coincidence. This was written *before* I read that conversation. ;-)
> 
> Narcissa Shepard is my Adept in-game. Here, in fic, she’s one of Remy Shepard’s fellow captains and N7 agents. She is not a Spectre in this AU.

**SSV Forrestal, 0125, Ship Time (one month after Sovereign’s defeat)**

All was quiet in the cockpit of the SSV  _Forrestal_. Flight Lieutenant Blair Conway settled into his seat and checked his instruments. He smiled; the junior pilot left everything the way he wanted. The status reports showed normal, the FTL drives was purring like a kitten, and the engines in top shape.

Conway chuckled to himself and tapped the link to the engineering deck. “Conway to Resner.”

Chief Engineer Resner’s voice echoed in the small compartment. She sounded grouchier than usual. “Whaddaya want, Connie? I’ve been cleanin’ up the last of the crap from Sovereign’s mess from a couple o'weeks gone. Unless you’ve got a tankard of coffee, I’m not speakin’ to you. Or anyone.”

He grinned, but kept the laughter to himself. “Tetchy this early morning, Resner? Your shift replacement late as usual?”

“I swear I’m gonna boot Grier out the airlock if he pulls this shit again. The cap'n’s already talked to him, but I don’t think it sank into his thick skull.”

“Well, if the Cap'n has her way, she’d get him drunk and dump him on Omega.”

“Hell, Connie, that’s a good idea. I just might do that.”

“I’ll help.” Conway chuckled and shook his head. Resner growled a lot, but under that prickly exterior was a woman who cared about her engineering team. Grier was in for an educational awakening, if the man kept being late.

“Speakin’ of Sovereign…are we the only ship in the sector again? You have no idea how annoyin’ that could be.”

Conway winced. Ever since the Battle of the Citadel, certain ships had been quietly ‘reassigned’ to patrol the Terminus systems. Their mission this time: to rout out the remaining Geth holdouts and pirate bands. Basically, clean-up duty. _Someone_ had to do it, but why send the best ships of the Alliance fleet?

He suspected the Council didn’t like hearing support for a certain Alliance Commander in command of a Special Prototype Ship. The  _Forrestal_ ’s captain backed Commander Shepard with his claims of a Reaper attack. So the reason for banishment.

“If it makes you feel better, we aren’t the only one out here.”

Resner snorted in derision. “C'mon. You know why they’ve pitched us out here without support. You believe in Shepard’s claims? The cap'n does, and that’s why we’re outcasts.”

“Wouldn’t say that to her face, if I were you.”

“Sure, I would. Everyone knows it, even you. Unlike most people, I happen to believe Shepard’s a bit of a nutcase. He’s brilliant, but the definition of _paranoid_. 'Reapers’. Yeah.”

Conway made a noncommittal noise. Once Conway got started, she didn’t stop. Unfortunately, many people in the Alliance agreed with her. He thought Shepard had a point. No way in hell could the Geth do this all by themselves. They had to have help.

He opened his mouth to say something, but an alert blared on his panel. He frowned and checked his scanners. Nothing on short-range, but on the long-range…

“What the–?”

“Problems topside, Connie?”

“Yeah.” He tapped the commlink and a familiar voice crackled on the frequency. Conway’s heart dropped into his boots at the controlled panic in the man’s voice.

**_“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, this is SSV Normandy…”_ **

_Normandy_? That was  **Commander Shepard** ’s ship. Conway knew Joker Moreau…the best pilot in the Fleet, and if Joker was issuing a mayday, they were in serious trouble.

Conway slapped the comm. “Captain Zagal to the command deck!”

******  
 **SSV, Forrestal, 0445 Ship Time (28 hours after receiving distress call from Normandy)**

Captain Narcissa Zagal frowned as she kept an eye on the readings. _Normandy_  was in the Omega Nebula, Amada System, over the planet called Alchera. The  _Forrestal_  streaked through space at high speed towards Amada, but even at their top velocity, it took time to get there. Precious time, time that was ticking away for the  _Normandy_.

She knew Commander Remy Shepard from the N7 program. He’d made it all the way to the highest N-level possible. Zagal herself was a N4. She’d seen him in battle and he was one of the best snipers she’d seen. She was an Adept, with a background in the sciences, and they’d paired up on missions in the past.

Now he and his crew was in trouble. Who could have attacked the  _Normandy_ so quickly?

“Coming up on the Omega Nebula relay, Captain,” Flight Lieutenant Conway reported. “It’ll take us another few hours to get to Alchera.”

“Any word from the  _Normandy_?”

“No, ma'am, other than the initial distress call from Joker–uh, Flight Lieutenant Moreau.”

Zagal’s hand gripped the edge of the railing so tightly that her knuckles were white. They were far away, too far away. She hoped other ships had heard the distress call and arrived at Alchera ahead of  _Forrestal_. Anyone docked at Omega would have at least heard Normandy’s plea for help.

At least she hoped so. “That isn’t a good sign, Connie.”

“No, ma'am. All stations, prepare for FTL translation to Omega. Repeat, secure all stations.”

She glanced over her shoulder at her crew. They all wore expressions of determination, no matter how they felt about Shepard. One of their own was in trouble. They needed to save them.

*****  
 **SSV Forrestal, 0845 Ship Time (32 hours after receiving Normandy’s distress call)**

“Alchera in three…two…one–”

The  _Forrestal_  came back into normal space…in the middle of a debris cloud. The shields held, but the command deck shuddered with the impacts. Zagal winced at the bright blooms of fire, quickly flaming out in the dark of space.

“Oh. My. God,” breathed someone at one of the navigation stations.

Zagal stared at the remnants of the Alliance’s most advanced and most powerful frigate. The  _Normandy_  floated in three separate pieces, her metal ribs bent, broken, shattered. Two of the three already sinking deep into Alchera’s atmosphere, red-hot and burning.

“Report,” Zagal whispered, hoping someone would be able to do so.

“ _Normandy_ ’s gone, Captain,” Conway answered, in a hushed tone. “Whatever attacked them made sure the job was done.”

“Any signs of whoever did this?”

“No, ma'am, scanners are clear. It looks like they were hit hard and fast.”

“Survivors?”

Conway tapped his board. “Getting interference from debris, but there are faint beams from pods down on the planet. Shepard must have gotten his crew off  _Normandy_  before the whole thing blew.”

Zagal nodded. “He would have.” Did he escape to join his crew or did he go down with his ship? She had a faint feeling of dread deep in her heart, but tried to ignore it.

“Wait…are we the only responders, Connie?”

He hesitated for a moment, but it was enough. “We have two other ships just coming into the system, Captain. One turian, the other a merchant vessel. Looks like they pushed their engines just as hard to get here.”

“ _That’s it?!_ ”

“Afraid so, ma'am.”

“Page Doctor Nguyen and Chief Brady to the hangar bay. Then send a priority message to Alliance Command.” She clamped down on a surge of anger at the idiots on the Council. “Make it clear that we need some help with rescue efforts, and if they drag their heels, there will be hell to pay. Clear?”

Conway winced at the flatness of her tone. “Crystal, ma'am.”

She turned and stalked out of the cockpit. Did the Council know about this? Did they send Shepard out here, hoping that he and his crew would be attacked?

Narcissa Zagal was determined to find answers, no matter the cost.


End file.
